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Friday, October 28, 2011

Paint This House

It's now been a week since we moved into our new house and low and behold, there are still plenty of boxes to be unpacked. In fact, there are more packed than unpacked.

We've gotten comfortable and settled in now, which is great but at the same time, not so great. I really don't want our decor to be stacks of boxes! So this weekend, I'm hoping to visit the paint store and bite that bullet. Instead of pondering over 5 different versions of "warm taupe", I'm just going to buy one...because paint = pretty walls = unpacked boxes = PROGRESS.

Makes sense, no?

My research has consisted of scouring Decorpad.com, decor magazines, and carrying around paint strips I've picked up from Home Depot, Rona, Lowe's, etc. Based on the reviews I've read online, I plan to go with Benjamin Moore paints, specifically their mid-range Regal collection.

Paints at the local hardware store are around $25-40 and what I've always used. I believe the last ones I used were Premier from Canadian Tire and Behr from Home Depot. They weren't bad but I'm curious to try out BM, which is considerable more (considering how many gallons we'll need!).

From what I've read online, BM paint provides better coverage and is easier to apply, the color lasts longer, and accurately reflects the color on their paint strips. A worthy investment I think, considering we may be living with it for the duration of our stay in this home.

House Beautiful had great swatches in their magazines and I was delighted to discover they're posted online, too!

"I love indeterminate colors like this taupey brown-gray, the color of wet bark. On an overcast day it looks a little green. In the sun, it goes more red. That flexibility makes it very accommodating. You can bring in almost any color. Using it on the walls and ceiling blurs the boundaries. People walk in and say, 'Oh, your ceiling feels so much higher.'" -WILLIAM MCINTOSH

"This is a warm, taupeish gray, what artists call a French gray. Very relaxed and chic. It immediately puts me on the Île Saint-Louis overlooking the Seine. It's equal parts earth and air, to use feng shui terms, which means it's perfect for a small, narrow entrance hall, because it adds warmth and air at the same time." -MICHAEL MCKINNON

"There are insipid blues and garish blues, and then there are blues that have an inner light to them, like this. With white moldings and a white plaster mirror, it really made an impact."-LARRY LASLO

Unfortunately, color is two dimensional online. You can only see the "green" side of Taos Taupe - you don't get to see how it reflects more gray than brown or vice versa in certain lights, how it cools down to a pebble or warms up into wool.

My plans for Silver Fox are the hallways or "outer" walls. Taos Taupe I'd like to use either in the living room or master bedroom. Caribbean Blue Water I'm on the fence about. We've already done a similar color as our living room accent wall in our previous apartment but then again, it's a color I really like and will look fabulous in a dramatic powder room or guest bedroom.

Hopefully I'll have an update for you after the weekend with what colors we ended up with.